The reminder about the dryer…

Hey there BCU Fam!

For this post, because of the informal format, please tune into the podcast recording (click here or on the BCU avatar below) and refer to the written post for the highlights. We pray the post blesses and encourages you. If so, please thumbs up AND leave a comment! Thank you and enjoy the post!

Podcast highlights:

  • Back in the day–—-when talk shows were all the rage, I was a HUGE fan of the Oprah Winfrey show, and even had a short guest spot (I may need to see if I can find that clip)😉.
  • I found some of her shows helpful in dispensing sound advice for relationships, tasks and chores.
  • One show talked about the potential detriment of leaving your clothes dryer running when you are not at home.
  • Listen in to find out how the Lord used that show to remind me of the importance of obedience.

Scripture references:

I Samuel 15:22-23

22 And Samuel said, Hath the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams.

23 For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the Lord, he hath also rejected thee from being king.

Proverbs 3:5-6

5 Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.

6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.

Proverbs 9:6

6 Forsake the foolish, and live; and go in the way of understanding.

BCUFam, I only had about 15-20 minutes left on the cycle for the clothes to dry, so I was really tempted to leave it running so when I returned home, I could get back to “Restville” a lot faster. Despite what I knew to do, the enemy came into my mind to rationalize and debate the sound wisdom God gave me with the lure of convenience, ease, and the pressure to hurry. Oh, but the voice of the Lord came to me and said, “think about what could happen…..if something did happen, it would have been 100% avoidable, if you had just listened.” And thank God I heeded the warning. Sure my day was interrupted, but it could have been altered in a way where a tragedy could have taken place. I thank the Lord for His soft voice reminding me that obedience always is better than sacrifice. Amen? Amen!

Father in the name of Jesus, as we come before you today, we thank You as always for Your Word! Your Word is wisdom in reminding us to acknowledge You in ALL of our ways and to follow through with the information and advice You give us because it is always perfect. Help us to not walk in the ways of foolishness, rather, to use the wisdom You have given us, the wisdom that comes with Your Word and acknowledging You so we are always doing things the right way. And for the times we did not acknowledge You and leaned to our own understanding, please forgive us, Jesus! Please help us, Lord going forward to follow what You say so that You are glorified, honored and praised in our lives. In Jesus name, we pray, Amen!

As a reminder, if you have not subscribed to BlenCouragesU.com, please do so! It’s free and a good place to get the encouragement, inspiration and information based the Word of God! Additionally, you can also see what we are up to on Facebook, X, and Instagram.

Also, if you so inclined, join us for our Thursday Night Bible Study––we are LIVE on YouTube 8:05EST/7:05CST. You can also listen in and subscribe to the podcast on whatever platform BCU is available on. Some of those platforms are Amazon Music, AnchorFm, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, iHeart Radio, Spotify,  Stitcher Radio , and many more of your favorite podcast platforms!

Thank you SO much for stopping by! May God bless, keep and make His face to shine upon you as you #StayOnTheWall!

Love,

BCU

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Nation vs. Nation

Hey there BCU Fam!

For this post, because of the informal format, please tune into the podcast recording (click here or on the BCU avatar below) and refer to the written post for the highlights. We pray the post blesses and encourages you. If so, please thumbs up AND leave a comment! Thank you and enjoy the post!

Podcast highlights:*

*Disclaimer: At the time of this post/podcast, this is a developing story. The written/spoken information may unintentional accuracies. Any information that was obtained came from credible news outlets and reporters.  

  • Recently, there was a huge kerfuffle in Alabama which started because an high-ranking employee who happened to be a seasoned African-American male, was attacked by a mob of Caucasian men while on the job.
  • The highly-charged, racially-spiked melee sparked public outrage, debates, comments and memes that celebrated various shades of unity and revenge.
  • In the midst of this developing story, the Lord reminded me these kinds of very wrong incidents are an indication of His coming back.

Scripture references:

Matthew 5:3-13

3 And as he sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?

4 And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you.

5 For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.

6 And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.

7 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.

8 All these are the beginning of sorrows.

9 Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name’s sake.

10 And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another.

11 And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many.

12 And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.

13 But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.

James 1:19-20

19 Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath:

20 For the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God.

I Peter 3:8-9

8 Finally, be ye all of one mind, having compassion one of another, love as brethren, be pitiful, be courteous:

9 Not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing: but contrariwise blessing; knowing that ye are thereunto called, that ye should inherit a blessing.

Romans 12:19

19 Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.

BCUFam, let me be clear——that attack was WRONG! And as the people of God, with the help of the Lord, we can defend ourselves, and assist those who need help. We see that in Luke 10 with the parable of the Good Samaritan.  

Many of the celebrations, comments, memes, and attitudes that followed the attack were steeped in an angry, vengeful spirit which is expected from the world, but should not come from the people of God, because it does not line up with the Word of God. 

Yes, we are called to love when we are hated. Love is not blind to the fact that discrimination and mistreatment does happen. Loves does not stay quiet when it is time to speak up. Love does not mean we will have a close relationship with everyone, or those that mistreated us.  The love that Jesus puts on the inside will not have us hating on, speaking ill of, entertaining  evil thoughts or plotting evil deeds to person or persons from another nation because of what was done to someone else. Love is patient, kind, rejoices in truth, bears, believes, hopes and endures all things. While that is not always easy to do (ask me how I know), the Lord is able to help us do it. Amen? Amen! Let’s pray!

Father, in the name of Jesus, thank You for another opportunity to hear Your Word, ponder what You have told us and shine the spotlight on all of us——–so we can be sure we are in right standing with You, Jesus. We want to be sure our conversations and how we feel about all the people You have created lines up with Your Holy Word. Help us to remember that James 3 reminds us that we should not use the same mouth to bless You and curse people who You have made in Your image. Bless us to remember that while people will not always do what they are supposed to do, they will not always conduct themselves in a way that lines up with Your Word, they will do nasty, hateful, ugly things against others, help us NOT to do those same things, Jesus. 

Rather, we ask You Lord to avenge your very elect that cry out to You day and night! We cry out to You, Lord, for those who are oppressed, discriminated against, harassed, mistreated and marginalized. Help us, Lord to know what to do and say, and which direction to go in, so YOU are glorified, honored and praised——-and that someone will be saved! 

Bless us not to be so caught up and distracted by that goings on in this world that we miss out in entering the Kingdom of God. We truly want our words, thoughts and deeds to be pleasing to You, so we hear “well done, thou good and faithful servant!” It’s in Jesus name we thank You for hearing our pleas and helping us. Amen!

As a reminder, if you have not subscribed to BlenCouragesU.com, please do so! It’s free and a good place to get the encouragement, inspiration and information based the Word of God! Additionally, you can also see what we are up to on Facebook, X, and Instagram.

Also, if you so inclined, join us for our Thursday Night Bible Study––we are LIVE on YouTube 8:05EST/7:05CST. You can also listen in and subscribe to the podcast on whatever platform BCU is available on. Some of those platforms are Amazon Music, AnchorFm, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, iHeart Radio, Spotify,  Stitcher Radio , and many more of your favorite podcast platforms!

Thank you SO much for stopping by! May God bless, keep and make His face to shine upon you as you #StayOnTheWall!

Love,

BCU

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The client, Jesus and waiting….

Hey there BCU Fam!

For this post, because of the informal format, please tune into the podcast recording (click here or on the BCU avatar below) and refer to the written post for the highlights. We pray the post blesses and encourages you. If so, please thumbs up AND leave a comment! Thank you and enjoy the post!

Podcast highlights:

  • I have been an instructor for many years—–teaching many types of classes and people on a regular basis.
  • In my “housekeeping” portions of class, I verbally and visually outline the criterion to receive credit for the session.
  • One student escalated a request to receive their class credit almost immediately after class concluded.
  • The Lord used this situation as a test for my response to the individual, and to teach me lesson about listening, waiting and trusting what He says.

Scripture references:

James 1:19-20

19 Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath:

20 For the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God.

Isaiah 40:31

31 But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.

Proverbs 30:5

5 Every word of God is pure: He is a shield unto them that put their trust in Him.

Proverbs 3:6

6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.

Psalm 34:19

19 Many are the afflictions of the righteous: but the Lord delivereth him out of them all.

Isaiah 65:24

24 And it shall come to pass, that before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet speaking, I will hear.

Hebrews 13:5

5 Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.

Numbers 23:19

19 God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?

BCUFam, I can relate to the client in terms of anxiousness and concern about waiting for a promise. When we feel that way, rather than lean to our own understanding, we can to go back to what the Word of God says and trust He will take care of whatever the situation is. Amen? Amen! Let’s pray!

Father, in the name of Jesus, we come before You, thanking and praising you for Your Word once again! We thank You for the encouragement, the admonishment, and for the correction. Please forgive us for the times we ran ahead of You, and tried to do Your work. Bless us to rest assured that your have heard our cry, and for believing that when You say something is going to come to pass, that it will. Bless us not be be anxious or agitated in our spirit——–and if we do feel that way, please help us to cling to You all the more, knowing that You are able to do exceedingly and abundantly above ALL we can ask or think according to the power that works in us.  We thank You for the rest You give us, knowing that You are taking care of us, Your plan is perfect, Your will will be done and Your name will be praised! In Jesus name we pray, Amen!

As a reminder, if you have not subscribed to BlenCouragesU.com, please do so! It’s free and a good place to get the encouragement, inspiration and information based the Word of God! Additionally, you can also see what we are up to on Facebook, X, and Instagram.

Also, if you so inclined, join us for our Thursday Night Bible Study––we are LIVE on YouTube 8:05EST/7:05CST. You can also listen in and subscribe to the podcast on whatever platform BCU is available on. Some of those platforms are Amazon Music, AnchorFm, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, iHeart Radio, Spotify,  Stitcher Radio , and many more of your favorite podcast platforms!

Thank you SO much for stopping by! May God bless, keep and make His face to shine upon you as you #StayOnTheWall!

Love,

BCU

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Word study: “Rest”

Hey there BCU Fam!

Typically, you have the option of listening to our podcast, reading the notes or both. For this post, because of the informal format, please tune into the podcast recording (click here or on the BCU avatar below) and refer to the written post for the highlights. We pray the post blesses and encourages you. If so, please thumbs up AND leave a comment! Thank you and enjoy the post!

Podcast highlights:

  • We are wrapping up our word study series we started last month by looking at the Biblical definition of a word or phrase.
  • One Greek word for “rest” is anapausis, which means to cease from movement, intermission, or tranquility of the body and/or mind, even when there is chaos all around us.
  • The people of God should be resting on a regular basis as God did, and as Jesus said.

Scripture references

Luke 19:13
And he called his ten servants, and delivered them ten pounds, and said unto them, Occupy till I come.

Proverbs 3:5-6

5 Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.

6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.

Genesis 2:2

2 And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made.

Matthew 11:28-30

28 Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.

30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

Mark 6:30-32

30 And the apostles gathered themselves together unto Jesus, and told him all things, both what they had done, and what they had taught.

31 And he said unto them, Come ye yourselves apart into a desert place, and rest a while: for there were many coming and going, and they had no leisure so much as to eat.

32 And they departed into a desert place by ship privately.

Are you operating in the primarily in the chronos time zone? If so, you may not be resting properly.

BCUFam, our bodies and minds need to rest on the regular in order to hear God and to function optimally. While we cannot deny that we have situations here, if we know Jesus in the pardoning of our sins, we can take our concerns to the Lord in prayer and leave them there without the situations consuming us with rest-stealing worry and anxiety.

Also, let’s commit to practicing taking time away from the hustle and bustle of our lives on a regular basis and get to a “desert” place where Jesus is, so we can operate more in the “kairos” time zone.* In doing so, we will find that although the situations have not changed, our yokes are easy and our burdens are light. Amen? Amen! Let’s pray about it!

Father, in the name of Jesus, as we come before You, we thank You for the Word of God that has refreshed our souls! Thank You for reminding us, that when we are overwhelmed, we can go to the Rock that is higher than ourselves, just as David did. We can come to You in prayer with all of our concerns, situations, thoughts and feelings, and leave them with You, so we are no longer consumed, but feel peace and experience rest as only You can give.

Please remember those of us who are really in the thick of the worry struggle. Some of us are not resting because of situations going on our our families, on the job, with our children, our spouses, friends, our desire for a spouse, our physical and/or mental health, past trauma, or any number of things. We ask Lord, that your Spirit touches all who are going through even now, Lord Jesus——–bless them to feel Your presence, and to hear Your voice as You speak over their situation and work things out according to Your will and way. Bless everyone listening to remember that You are able to do exceedingly and abundantly above all we can ask or think according to the power that works in us. 

Thank you for blessing someone today to repent, be baptized and filled with the Holy Ghost so they can experience the rest that comes from You, Jesus. We thank You for answering our prayers today, in Jesus name, we pray, Amen!

As a reminder, if you have not subscribed to BlenCouragesU.com, please do so! It’s free and a good place to get the encouragement, inspiration and information based the Word of God! Additionally, you can also see what we are up to on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Also, if you so inclined, join us for our Thursday Night Bible Study––we are LIVE on YouTube 8:05EST/7:05CST. You can also listen in and subscribe to the podcast on whatever platform BCU is available on. Some of those mediums include Amazon Music, AnchorFm, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, iHeart Radio, Spotify, and many more of your favorite podcast platforms!

Thank you SO much for stopping by! May God bless, keep and make His face to shine upon you as you #StayOnTheWall!

Love,

BCU

* Check the BCU Facebook page for my “rest” video.

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Word study: “Beareth all things”

Hey there BCU Fam!

Typically, you have the option of listening to our podcast, reading the notes or both. For this post, because of the informal format, please tune into the podcast recording (click here or on the BCU avatar below) and refer to the written post for the highlights. We pray the post blesses and encourages you. If so, please thumbs up AND leave a comment! Thank you and enjoy the post!

Podcast highlights:

  • We are continuing our word study this week by looking at the Biblical definition of a word or phrase.
  • The Greek word for “beareth” is stego, which means to cover, as a roof covers a house.
  • In essence, as a roof covers a building and protects the people inside, when we operate in “stego love”, our love covers or protects the people “under our roof”.

Scripture references

I Corinthians 13:1-7

13 Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal.

2 And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing.

3 And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing.

4 Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up,

5 Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil;

6 Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth;

7 Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.

Proverbs 10:12

12 Hatred stirreth up strifes: but love covereth all sins.

Does your love for people cover or expose them?

A love that bears all things would cover/protect an individual by prayerfully approaching/talking/counseling them in a private setting. And of course, following the Lord’s leading while prayerfully considering the person’s situation, circumstances and reply throughout and after the conversation. The opposite of covering and protecting would be to berate or belittle the person, expose the situation publicly, and/or to other people unnecessarily, which would displease God. With the help of the Lord, we always want our love to cover vs. expose people. Amen? Amen!

Father, in the name of Jesus, as we come before you, we thank you for the Word of God that reminds us that love bears ALL things! Help us to remember to be a roof to Your people—–to cover and protect as You would lead us to do so. Help us to look for and believe on the positive side of people and situations—–to believe, hope and endure all things with people unless You direct otherwise. And even in those situations where people have done wrong, bless us, Jesus to still exhibit a loving spirit toward them as You have done and continue to do toward us. In Jesus name we thank and praise You! Amen!

As a reminder, if you have not subscribed to BlenCouragesU.com, please do so! It’s free and a good place to get the encouragement, inspiration and information based the Word of God! Additionally, you can also see what we are up to on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Also, if you so inclined, join us for our Thursday Night Bible Study––we are LIVE on YouTube 8:05EST/7:05CST. You can also listen in and subscribe to the podcast on whatever platform BCU is available on. Some of those mediums include Amazon Music, AnchorFm, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, iHeart Radio, Spotify, and many more of your favorite podcast platforms!

Thank you SO much for stopping by! May God bless, keep and make His face to shine upon you as you #StayOnTheWall!

Love,

BCU

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